The White House plans to work with House Republicans on administration-friendly changes to the Senate’s overwhelmingly bipartisan bill (98-2) that slaps new sanctions on Russia and curbs Trump’s power to ease penalties against Moscow.politico.com(See also Russia, Russian Meddling in Election, Rex Tillerson)

2017.06.19

Dozens of young minority and female State Department recruits received startling news that they would not be able to soon join the Foreign Service despite having been promised that opportunity.washingtonpost.com(See also Rex Tillerson)

2017.06.27

The White House issued a statement Monday evening threatening to exact "a heavy price" in response to a potential chemical attack by the Syrian government, but senior national security officials were caught off guard and had no idea a statement was coming that threatened military action - a major step.nbcnews.com(See also Administration Errors, Syria, Rex Tillerson, Nikki Haley)

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has failed to nominate anyone to most of the department’s 38 highest-ranking jobs, leaving many critical departments without direction or a coherent foreign policy.nytimes.com(See also Rex Tillerson, Assaults on Government)

2017.10.01

Donald Trump undercut his own secretary of state, calling his effort to open lines of communication with North Korea a waste of time, and seeming to rule out a diplomatic resolution to the nuclear-edged confrontation with Pyongyang, just a day after Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson said he was reaching out in hopes of starting a new dialogue.nytimes.com(See also Rex Tillerson, North Korea, Unpresidential Behavior, Nuclear Weapons)

2017.10.04

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was on the verge of resigning this past summer amid mounting policy disputes and clashes with the White House, openly disparaging Donald Trump, referring to him as a "moron."nbcnews.com(See also Rex Tillerson)

The White House has developed a plan to force out Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, whose relationship with Donald Trump has been strained, and replace him with Mike Pompeo, the C.I.A. director, perhaps within the next several weeks.nytimes.com(See also Rex Tillerson, Mike Pompeo, Trump Cabinet)

A transition plan would install Mike Pompeo, the C.I.A. director, as secretary of state, and tap Senator Tom Cotton to lead the spy agency.

2017.12.09

An award-winning U.S. diplomat who was seen as a rising star at the State Department has issued a scathing resignation letter, accusing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and the Donald Trump administration of undercutting the State Department and damaging America’s influence in the world.foreignpolicy.com(See also Foreign Policy, Rex Tillerson)

State Department officials have been ordered to pare back passages in a soon-to-be-released annual report on global human rights that traditionally discuss women’s reproductive rights and discrimination, stripping passages that describe views on family planning, contraceptives, abortion, as well as racial, ethnic, and sexual discrimination.politico.com(See also Rex Tillerson, Women)

The move reflects the Tillerson-Trump view of human rights as a low priority in foreign policy.

As a result, not one of the 23 analysts working in the department’s Global Engagement Center — which has been tasked with countering Moscow’s disinformation campaign — speaks Russian, and a department hiring freeze has hindered efforts to recruit the computer experts needed to track the Russian efforts.